Because of my ADD (as good as anything to blame)...I am working on several projects..

[GordonJ]

Yes, ADD. Actually diagnosed many years ago with Attention Deficit Disorder.

It is as good a "reason" for not getting things done as there is. Fortunately, I've been able to stay aware of all detours and opportunities to get sidetracked and have actually gotten some things done.

Anyhow, now that I am learning to TWITTER and see you can post links in your tweet, then I might as well have them come here, right?

In today's tweet I wrote that I was making some healthy Pizzelles and some granola in a mug as well as working on Harvey Brody's TOLL POSITION book due out in April.

So, here's the deal on the PIZZELLES.

I spent my high school years at Papa Felice's Pizza Shop where we made all things "Italian" from scratch...and the holidays always brought out the pizzelle iron, a cookie, like a sugar ice cream cone unwrapped...for those who have never had any.

Anyhow, I got a new pizzelle maker for Christmas, industrial strength and I've been playing around with some HEALTHY varieties...including sugar free cookies and VEGETABLE laden pizzelles.

I'm staying gluten free, no sugar, no salt...fresh organic ingredients only, and I've come up with some good recipes, which I'll gladly share with other pizzelle fans.

See, I wanted something to replace that potato chip/Dorito/frito/pretzel snack that has been doing me dirt for so many years.

I want crunchy, that seems salty (thanks Mrs. Dash) yet isn't going get me any closer to the grave...so, I have decided to make my own.

Pizzelles are thin, but they don't have to be, so I've been able to use my Magic Bullet and put in broccoli and spinach and use rice flour and ground organic oatmeal along with a variety of salt free spices to create some pretty tasty snacks...and some really gaggy ones too. YIKES.

Then, at Christmas, I got a cake in a mug...and I took the recipe and have been playing around with it. The recipe lets you "bake" a cake in 3 minutes in your microwave. How sweet and convenient.

Only thing is, I don't eat cakes or cupcakes, so I've modified the recipe to create a bunch of 3 minute muffins, using fresh blueberries, peaches, oatmeal, rice flour, flaxseed and acai, which my kid brought back from Brazil 3 years ago (not what I'm using today, just the "concept" of acai {pronounced ah sigh EE} and tells me they have Acai Bars in CA.

Anyhow, I've been able to create some interesting MUG snacks and even 3 minute MUG meals...perhaps I should write a cookbook? There are other cookbooks on MUG cooking in the microwave, but they are sugar and salt and flour laden...not for the person interested in health.

Is there anyone here who has used a pizzelle maker, and has a good recipe? (I'll modify it to my healthy needs) AND,

is there anyone else who is doing any MUG cooking in the microwave?

I'd love to hear from you.

And the Harvey Brody update is progressing, and I'm answering the 50 questions that some of you sent in years and years and years ago...and getting feedback from a FEW people in the field whom we've given some guidance to.

So, I'm working. Doing things in short spurts of a couple of hours, that way I can stay focused...it helps when I attack the toughest project first thing in the moring...and on some days, I actually stay on task all through the day.

But most days, I break my work up with trips to the kitchen to try to whip up something worth eating that isn't also killing me...and there are some pretty awful tasting days in there too...not only is organic and health food more expensive, but often, (until you get your taste buds adjusted) pretty yucky too.

Yesterday I circled McDonald's 3 times before I left without ordering any greasy, salt/poop/sugar laden cheesburgers...good for me?

OK, so if I tweet and have something to tweet about, I'll post here, unless it gets obnoxious and uninteresting...so my 7 followers can read what's on my mind.

Gordon Jay Alexander

PS, If anyone wants to collaborate on a recipe book, I'm open to that, but I don't have much time to do anything other than send the recipes to you. So if you have the time to do a Joint Venture cookbook, then email me at [email protected]

[Dien Rice]

Originally Posted by GordonJ

So, here's the deal on the PIZZELLES.

Hi Gordon!

I've also been looking for "healthy" snacks...

I haven't quite found any "exactly". Maybe it's because I like fried food too much!

One I've found that I can buy from stores that sell Indian groceries are a kind of roasted or fried peas (I'm not sure which). I think they're delicious! They're salty and spicy and crunchy...

They are vegetables, after all! (Though they can be a bit oily...)

Here's what a package of them can look like...


(from here...)

The Japanese also do a version called "wasabi peas"... It's like dried peas smeared with wasabi, which is like a strong green mustard... I'm not a big fan, but I like the Indian non-wasabi variety.

Actually... come to think of it, I also love boiled peanuts. I just wish I knew where to buy 'em... I don't think you can get 'em in my town, that I've seen.

I hope you liked this post. Now if you know of any (other) "healthy" snacks, please let me know...

Cheers,

Dien

Buy some red grapes or cherries and wash them good then, while they're still wet, lay them out single layer on a cookie sheet and stick into the freezer. Once they're frozen, just dump them into a Ziplok bag and stick back into the freezer. Grab a handful as needed and enjoy. Excellent for hot summer days or any time.

Slice dill pickles into spears or slabs lengthwise. Wrap in lettuce or spinach leaves. For non-vegetarians, wrap in roast beef or dried beef and enjoy. This packs well for day hikes (in a Ziplok bag) and will stay nice in a day pack with a bit of cold. Sure quenches the thirst on a hike in hot weather.

Sandi Bowman

Originally Posted by Dien Rice

Hi Gordon!

I've also been looking for "healthy" snacks...

I haven't quite found any "exactly". Maybe it's because I like fried food too much!

One I've found that I can buy from stores that sell Indian groceries are a kind of roasted or fried peas (I'm not sure which). I think they're delicious! They're salty and spicy and crunchy...

They are vegetables, after all! (Though they can be a bit oily...)

Here's what a package of them can look like...


(from here...)

The Japanese also do a version called "wasabi peas"... It's like dried peas smeared with wasabi, which is like a strong green mustard... I'm not a big fan, but I like the Indian non-wasabi variety.

Actually... come to think of it, I also love boiled peanuts. I just wish I knew where to buy 'em... I don't think you can get 'em in my town, that I've seen.

I hope you liked this post. Now if you know of any (other) "healthy" snacks, please let me know...

Cheers,

Dien

http://www.whitleyspeanut.com/vcart/.../?itemblock=15

http://www.whitleyspeanut.com/vcart/.../?itemblock=19

[GordonJ]

Originally Posted by Dien Rice

Hi Gordon!

I've also been looking for "healthy" snacks...

I hope you liked this post. Now if you know of any (other) "healthy" snacks, please let me know...

Cheers,

Dien

Dien and others,

See, what is a "healthy" snack for some can be deadly for others.

I'm not only on a salt/sugar restricted diet, but a gluten free one, and to add insult to injury, I have diverticulosis...which means I don't eat the very healthy seeds and nuts.

So no peanuts, popcorn, corn, strawberries, (or any berry with small seeds)...all the healthy stuff that many people can eat instead of their fried cravings or flour based carbs.

For example, PICKLES, which Sandi mentioned have a very high salt content and the pickling brine is itself laden with salt and sugar. NO pickles for me (although I do love them).

The reason I'm developing my own snacks is due to all the restrictions and the numbers to watch.

I'm paying for all those double cheeseburgers I so lustfully enjoyed in my wayward youth. Now, I'm the "classic" gramps...oatmeal and...
more oatmeal (thank goodness I love the stuff).

Today, many schools prohibit PEANUT products of any kind because too many kids (even if it is just ONE in the school) could have a reaction that may lead to death.

And speaking of tainted peanuts from our friends in the Georgia peanut factory, who circumvented the testing process and KNOWINGLY sent out tainted peanut butter...we should point out to them that the scoundrels in China who were involved in the tainted baby formula scandal were HANGED.

What will we do to these rats in Georgia? Probably give them federal bail out money cause their business suffered so terribly...and give the Georgia inspectors a RAISE and a bonus trip to Vegas for working so hard and under such stress.

Anyhow, one man's health food, well, you know the rest.

Gordon Alexander

[Dien Rice]

Originally Posted by GordonJ

Dien and others,

See, what is a "healthy" snack for some can be deadly for others.

I'm not only on a salt/sugar restricted diet, but a gluten free one, and to add insult to injury, I have diverticulosis...which means I don't eat the very healthy seeds and nuts.

So no peanuts, popcorn, corn, strawberries, (or any berry with small seeds)...all the healthy stuff that many people can eat instead of their fried cravings or flour based carbs.

Hi Gordon,

I once had some vegetable chips. They were like potato chips, but made out of vegetables (e.g. string beans were one of the vegetables in it, as I recall). They were crunchy (like potato chips).

There seem to be some recipes if you search on Google for "vegetable chips" - http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=vegetable+chips

For flavoring, I know one alternative flavoring used by some people is lemon juice. It's good for you, and it can be surprisingly tasty. Not sure how it would work with chips, though it works on other foods....

I need to eat more healthily too!

- Dien

[Dien Rice]

Originally Posted by Bill

http://www.whitleyspeanut.com/vcart/.../?itemblock=15

http://www.whitleyspeanut.com/vcart/.../?itemblock=19

Thanks Bill,

I had no idea that boiled peanuts were available in a can!

Best wishes

Dien

Hmmm...sorry to hear about your limitations, Gordon. I know, first hand, what it means as Lee and I are gluten free (GF as we say) since I was diagnosed as a celiac (only took docs 66 years to figure that one out). Add in diabetes, an inability to swallow all those healthy and delicious salads due to no motility in the esophagus and other allergy problems and simply eating is a hazardous activity. I feel for you, believe me.

The pickles are simply a snack which we have when hiking on a hot summer day to prevent dehydration and salt depletion from sweating/exertion (we normally climb mountain trails in the Columbia Gorge). You could substitute low sodium cheese for the pickles and drink lots of fluids.

Simply Organic makes powdered GF sauces that you can use to add some variety to veggie snacks. I discovered that you can use some of them in powdered form to sprinkle on thin sliced veggies for snacking...or dipping. Not all of them are low sodium but a surprising number of the better ones are so you might check them out.

I help out at the Gluten Free Club.com site. It's a membership site but lots of GF recipes (among other things) there that might help you with your GF diet/lifestyle.

There's a business idea that's sorely needed: GF foods, snacks, and so on that can be enjoyed away from home without a lot of hassle. The selection of good ones is quite limited, unfortunately. Getting better but still lots of room for improvement in taste, availability, and expense...not to mention travel convenience. Cook in their own containers when traveling would be great as would dehydrated GF foods minus the excess sodium. Big, and growing, market out there for those who can do it.

Sandi Bowman